Month: April 2011
Grabbing a Thin Reed, Republicans Attack DOT Over Stimulus Grant Process
Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood likes to remind critics that there have been no reports of “boondoggles” or “sweetheart deals” related to transportation stimulus funds. He’s proud that the money has been put to the uses it was intended for.
April 11, 2011
You Can Open Your Eyes Now: Budget Deal Spares Transpo the Worst
It’s Monday morning, and the government is open for business. In a last-minute agreement just an hour before the current budget extension was to expire Friday night, Democrats and Republicans avoided the nuclear option of a government shutdown.
April 11, 2011
Transit and Rail Likely to Take a Hit in Budget Compromise
It's tempting, following a political standoff like the one that took place last week in Washington, to tally up some rough approximation of "points scored," and declare one party the winner. After the federal government narrowly avoided shutdown, observers were doing just that.
April 11, 2011
Today’s Headlines
Shutdown Averted: Billions for Transportation Will Be Cut (The Hill) EPA Riders Eliminated During Budget Deal (Politico) Gas Prices on Path for an All-Time High (CNN) Double Beltways for DC Would Have Meant Double Sprawl (Transpo Nation) Facebook Goes Suburban With Move to Menlo Park (Grist) Study: High Asthma Rates Near Ports in California (NRDC) … Continued
April 11, 2011
What I Did On My Summer Vacation: Long For Public Transportation
Thanks to fabulous pinch-hitting from Kathryn, Noah, and Ben during a crazy week on Capitol Hill, I got to spend most of my week snorkeling and hiking my way through Puerto Rico. It was about as idyllic as I could have wished for – except for one glaring problem. From my perspective as a tourist, it seems Puerto Rico is in desperate need of a functioning public transportation system.
April 8, 2011
Government Shutdown Would Be a Punch in the Gut to Transit Agencies
A powwow between Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, President Obama, and House Speaker John Boehner last night failed to yield a compromise that would put a budget in place before the government shuts down at midnight tonight. The failure of yet another attempt to negotiate makes a government shutdown all but inevitable.
April 8, 2011
Activists’ Warnings About Miami’s Brickell Avenue Prove Prophetic
Around the Network today: An avoidable tragedy shakes Miami, and reformers make progress in Seattle, but suffer a setback in Annapolis.
April 8, 2011
Today’s Headlines
Clean Air Rules Key Sticking Point in Budget Impasse (The Hill) House Bill to Stop EPA from Regulating Greenhouse Gases Passes (WSJ) Amtrak on Pace for Record Ridership (The Hill) Capital Bikeshare Ads Could Generate $500,000 for DC (WBJ) The Good, Bad, and Ugly of London’s Boris Bikes (This Big City) Can We Combine Energy, … Continued
April 8, 2011
Amidst Budget Impasse, GOP Tries and Fails to Gut Clean Air Act
With budget talks reaching a critical pass to avert a government shutdown, House Republicans have been busy passing an ideological wishlist, including an attempt to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency from "raising taxes." H.R. 910, which they are calling the “Energy Tax Prevention Act” would undermine the EPA’s ability to restrict greenhouse gas emissions from industrial and manufacturing plants and gut the Clean Air Act.
April 7, 2011
The Ryan Budget: Doing the Same Thing, Expecting a Different Result
The House GOP had its big moment earlier this week. Amidst skyrocketing oil prices, deteriorating infrastructure and slumping transportation budgets, Republicans had their chance to lay out a bold new policy framework to help America recover from a brutal recession and reaffirm its place as a world leader.
April 7, 2011